Road Trip 2009 - Day 1

Well, we took off for Santa Fe, New Mexico today.  Left the homespread at 11:30 our time, and arrived in SF at 8:30 their time.  Pretty good for two old folks, a teenager, and a dog.  102 º in Oklahoma, 86º in SF when we pulled in.  The smell of sage, and this sunset.  Worth every mile!

Warning label

You know, I don't think the government is properly labeling all the products we consume. If they were, then this little package would have come with a label that read this way...WARNING: I come with a big heart, and lots of capacity to love. Be prepared for the following physical changes: your heart will swell with love, you will begin to talk in baby talk, and your hand will constantly be in the stroke position. There are absolutely no refunds, you may not return me to the lonely street where you found me. But I have a life-time warranty to love and be loved in return. My name is Bandit, but I answer to pookey, beautiful girl, princess, or any other endearments you wish to bestow on me.

Butterfly blessings

111 degrees in our neck of the woods today and just when I thought it was unbearable, God sent a butterfly to brighten my day. Then the birds took such joy in the small puddles that my sprinkler made, that it reminded me that it is the small joys that matter the most. Not world peace, not economic recovery, just birdsong, butterfly wings, and the gift of today.

Mary

Hail Mary, full of grace
The Lord is with thee
Blessed art thou among women
And blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus

Holy Mary, mother of God
Pray for us sinners
Now and at the hour of our death.

Mary, heavenly mother, thank you for the example of motherhood you have given us all and for the gift of children you have bestowed on us. Thank you, especially, today on the birthday of our beautiful daughter, Karlie. I pray that you will watch over and care for her with the same perfect love you have shown us all. And that she will look towards heaven for the guidance she needs as a mother. May your radiance shine down and continue to bless the world we live in.

Different name, same feeling

My grandmother Ethel had a group of friends who gathered on a regular basis at her home to quilt. There was a quilt rack suspended from the ceiling in her guest bedroom that contained someone's quilt and when they met, it would be lowered to table level and they would gather around it and each quilt on a section. They took turns working on each other's quilt tops.
I was never present at one of these gatherings, but I imagine they would quietly discuss each other's lives, dreams, worries, hopes, and successes. Children, spouses, neighbors, no subject was taboo. I am sure this not only filled a social need, but provided each of their homes with warm quilts to lie under during the winter. I love to think about my grammy looking at her quilts and remembering what was going on in her friend's lives at the moment each stitch was sewn.
This ritual went on all over the country and was called a quilting bee. I also have a group of friends that meet on a regular basis. We knit instead of quilt, but it really exists for the same reason as my grammy's group - to be with each other, to relish in friendship. We also have beautiful sweaters, scarves, and blankets to share as gifts and that warm our families.
Worldwide women are meeting at these knit-ins and it is a comfort to me to know that no matter how advanced and sophisticated we get as a society, there is still something that draws us, like a moth to a flame, to each other. We still have the need to share, to care and comfort, and to just "be" with other women.
Thank you, Payne County Knitters, for participating in this age old ritual of working with our hands and sharing with our hearts.

Koki, a dream fulfilled

As a young girl, I always dreamed of owning my own horse. I had the horse crazies real bad all my life. My papa had horses, but he lived across the state so I only got to ride 3-4 times per year. My dad was a veterinarian and I begged to be with any horses he was treating. But my own horse, that was what I wanted more than anything.
When I was 10-years old, my parents bought a horse for the family which immediately became my best friend. She was a young paint mare, and I named her Koki which stood for Little Woman in one of the Indian languages. I don't remember which tribe. She was ornery but safe, and became wise as she aged. I would come home from school, grab a bridle, hop on bareback (without a saddle) and we would just go. The freedom was unimaginable! Dirt roads, pastures, city streets, nowhere was beyond our range. Take in mind this was in the 1970's in rural Oklahoma where kids were safe to roam, everyone knew everyone, and everyone watched out for everyone. I never knew fear.
She stayed with me until college in 1983 when I left her at home as I went on with my life. She passed away in her home pasture from old age. I pray that her grass is always tall, her oats are always sweet, and I thank her for the joy she gave a young girl who just wanted a horse and got a best friend.